Obama8217;s opportunity

White House panels recommendations to curtail NSA spying lob the ball in his court.

White House panels recommendations to curtail NSA spying lob the ball in his court

If a 308-page report submitted this week by a panel appointed by US President Barack Obama to look into the cyber espionage activities of the countrys National Security Agency revealed by CIA contractor Edward Snowden in disclosures that have caused consternation among the USs international allies and ignited a fierce debate on privacy in the age of big data is any guide,national security is not a persuasive argument for state intrusion into the private lives of millions of people. The report calls for 46 specific changes in the NSAs current operations and recommends greater transparency and accountability in future surveillance programmes. That its authors are intelligence and legal experts who can hardly be considered anti-establishment strengthens the argument that the scale and mode of the surveillance was both unnecessary and ineffective as a means of countering terrorism. Taken with a federal judges view that the dragnet is almost Orwellian and likely unconstitutional,the report constitutes the best political opportunity so far to curtail the expansive powers given to the intelligence-gathering apparatus in the wake of 9/11.

The report has advised the president to make significant though modest reforms to the NSAs modus operandi. For instance,it recommends that requests to private companies to turn over customer information be held to higher standards than at present,and that the companies of which such requests are made should be allowed to disclose the number of requests received and how many they complied with. The latter was a key demand made by major technology companies that earlier this month urged Obama and Congress to downsize the NSA programmes,arguing that their reputations and bottom lines were under threat. Most importantly,the panel suggested that the NSA no longer be allowed to store vast troves of phone data,but that it should be stored privately. If the NSA requires specific records,it should get a court order.

Despite the legal and political momentum shifting towards a dilution of the NSAs espionage powers,policymakers are yet to be convinced that these programmes are not essential to securing the nation against terrorist threats. The NSA has iterated that its operations are lawful and indeed important for national security. While the legislative route might be riddled with obstacles,there are executive measures Obama can take to scale back such activities. But will he?